State Department To Begin Mass Layoffs After Supreme Court Decision

The State Department will soon cut nearly 2,000 jobs as part of a broad effort to shrink the federal workforce. The decision comes after the Supreme Court cleared the way for President Trump’s downsizing plans.

Key Facts:

Nearly 2,000 U.S.-based State Department workers are expected to lose their jobs.
The reorganization was initiated by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in April.
President Trump signed an executive order in February directing the overhaul.
Layoffs are part of efforts to streamline or eliminate over 300 offices and bureaus.
Terminations are set to begin as early as Friday following a Supreme Court decision.

The Rest of The Story:

Secretary of State Marco Rubio unveiled a reorganization plan in April aimed at slashing redundant operations within the State Department.

This followed a February executive order by President Donald Trump calling for a foreign service overhaul to better implement his administration’s foreign policy.

Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources Michael Rigas informed staff by email that affected employees would be notified soon.

“First and foremost, we want to thank them for their dedication and service to the United States,” Rigas wrote.

He also emphasized that the department is offering support to those impacted, including participants in Deferred Resignation Programs.

Although the department did not confirm exact numbers on Thursday, earlier plans submitted to Congress in May outlined intentions to lay off around 1,800 employees from a domestic workforce of 18,000.

An additional 1,575 were expected to resign through deferred exit programs.

More than 300 of the department’s 734 offices and bureaus will be consolidated, merged, or cut entirely as part of the restructuring.

Once notifications are complete, the agency will shift to “results-driven diplomacy,” Rigas stated.

Spokesperson Tammy Bruce pointed to court challenges as the main cause of delay in rolling out the layoffs.

“There has been a delay – not to our interests, but because of the courts,” Bruce said.

She added that the current structure is “too bureaucratic to function” and “has to change.”

🚨 BREAKING: State Department personnel get ready for MAJOR layoffs as soon as Friday – Semafor

This comes as a result of the SUPREME COURT greenlighting President Trump's major downsizing of the federal government.

THOUSANDS could now leave. Make it happen, Mr. Rubio! pic.twitter.com/mmFjgDqiUS

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) July 10, 2025

Commentary:

The reality is this: the U.S. government is bloated, expensive, and increasingly inefficient.

This move by the State Department—though painful for those affected—is long overdue.

For too long, taxpayers have funded sprawling bureaucracies that often serve more to preserve themselves than to serve the American people.

With a \$36 trillion national debt, the United States simply cannot afford a massive federal workforce that is resistant to reform.

Downsizing isn’t a matter of ideology—it’s a necessity.

Even if these changes come at a human cost, avoiding them guarantees even greater pain later.

The decision to eliminate more than 300 offices or bureaus should raise an obvious question: why did we have them to begin with?

If their functions were truly redundant or unnecessary, we should question how many similar inefficiencies exist across other departments.

It’s also telling that the courts were the only barrier to faster implementation.

That speaks volumes about how entrenched federal programs and staffing have become.

Bureaucracies rarely go quietly, and it’s no surprise they tried to protect themselves through legal means.

We should sympathize with those losing their jobs—many served honorably.

But good intentions don’t justify unnecessary spending.

A leaner government means we can prioritize defense, infrastructure, and debt reduction instead of paying for overlapping titles and pointless middle management.

This reorganization should only be the beginning.

Every federal agency must be audited and streamlined.

Programs should be required to prove their effectiveness—or be eliminated.

If the private sector can adapt, so must Washington.

What’s happening at the State Department is what accountability looks like.

It’s uncomfortable.

It’s disruptive.

But it’s also essential if we’re going to preserve the future of the country.

The Bottom Line:

The State Department is set to begin laying off nearly 2,000 employees following a Supreme Court decision backing the Trump administration’s plan to shrink the federal workforce.

This marks a major shift toward government streamlining amid spiraling national debt.

While the cuts are significant, they may also signal the start of broader reforms across federal agencies.